Recommended Thinking!

Read Donalyn Miller's blog post and "get on the bus"! Add your thoughts and ideas. We all DO need to work TOGETHER! https://nerdybookclub.wordpress.com/2016/01/17/getting-on-the-bus-by-donalyn-miller/!

New Beginnings!

It's always exciting getting ready for a new school year...whether you are a pre-school teacher, elementary, middle school, secondary or college professor... but right about this time I start panicking, wanting each year to be the best yet!!!  So, I will kick off this year with some of my favorites... books, authors, illustrators, researchers, resources, and literacy events. Feel free to respond and add ideas of your own!!!

August Week 1 Countdown to a Terrific Year

Celebrate an author, illustrator or poet each month 

in your classroom tied to his or her birthday month!

A Few September Contenders: Jim Arnosky, Toni DeTerlizzi, Jack Prelutsky, Jon Scieszka, Kevin O'Malley, Carmen Agra Deedy, Roald Dahl, Mildred Taylor, John Steptoe, Tomie dePaola, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Shel Silverstein, Andrea Davis Pinkney, Bernard Waber, Marissa Moss, Janet Wong

Wow! Who knew so many great authors, illustrators and poets had September birthdays!!! Click on the names above to get information and resources from the writers'/artists' websites.

Ideas: Create a corner in your room to showcase books. Create a display that students can add to as they read books, choose favorites, and find interesting facts about the book creator. A picture is always great to include so that students can see the author or illustrator behind the pages. Or create clues that have students guessing who the mystery author or illustrator of the month will be. Lead up to an exciting "unveiling."

If you can, find a book about the author that you can share with students. Richard Owens Publisher has a good "Meet the Author" series. Even better, check and see if your celebrated author or artist has written a memoir or autobiography that can be shared with students. One of my favorites is Jon Scieszka's Knuckleheads. It's a "laugh-out-loud" read aloud that regales stories of the six Scieszka brothers growing up in Michigan! Scieszka (rhymes with Fresca!) also has the Guys Read site to "help boys become self-motivated, lifelong readers," a great website for students and teachers to visit for book recommendations. Many authors and illustrators are willing to do "skype" visits with classrooms. Google to find the most up-to-date lists and really bring your author or illustrator to life for your students with a "visit" during the celebration month.

More Resources to Connect with Authors & Illustrators:
School Library Monthly (Author Birthdays Almanac)
Teaching Books.net "Meet the Author" movies and book readings; also fun are the author and illustrator audio name pronunciations.
Children's Literature (book reviews and author-illustrator events)
School Library Journal also has articles, interviews, video clipss and much more.
Reading is Fundamental (RIF) has many archived interviews as well.

What authors and illustrators do you celebrate in your room? Who do you plan to first introduce to your students this fall?

Such negligence on my part. Good thing I still haven't really shared this blog with anyone. Hoping my friend Pam Page will blog with me and between the two of us we will get a blog up and around. Important/fun recent literacy events… Speaking with Judy Blume at NCTE, getting a book signed, and then riding in an elevator with her! Reception for the live ALA awards announcements, celebrated with GVSU colleagues on a very snowy Monday in January. Congratulations to all the winners! And yesterday---the Literacy Studies Department's first Book Share Day! A great first attempt with wonderful students sharing what books they love to read. My TBR pile keeps growing! TODAY - read Razia's Ray of Hope: One Girl's Dream of an Education. CitizenKids books do a great job inspiring children to become global citizens.

ALSC Book Award Announcements!

On the eve of the announcements of the children's book awards, I thought I'd finally post again. So excited to hear what will win and to see if any of my favorites get an award! My big hope is still for THE ONE AND ONLY IVAN

for the Newbery, among a field of several other favorites. Stay tuned for a recap, as fellow book lover Pam Page and I are hosting an announcement celebration party tomorrow morning at our school.

A New Post

I've been reading, reading, reading, but not really blogging. Oh well... can't seem to do it all. I was putting away books that I had shared with my class this past week-end and just couldn't let this one go back on the shelf without rereading. So beautiful and such a lovely gesture. Wish I had remembered to look for the flag when I visited the National September 11 Memorial at the site of the World Trade Center in New York City... 14 Cows for America by Carmen Agra Deedy
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

"To the Maasai, the cow is life."
I reread this book just so I could get in on my GoodReads shelf because I loved it so when it was first published in 2009. The illustrations are AMAZING! The story is powerful! Carmen Agra Deedy is a great storyteller. Kimeli Naiyomah, who learned from his tribe's grandmas and grandpas that the Maasai are not only fierce warriors, but also compassionate and kind, did a beautiful thing to help Americans heal from the tragedy of 9/11. "To heal a sorrowing heart, give something that is dear to your own." Read the book and for more information, visit www.14cowsforamerica.com.



View all my reviews

Post BEA

Well, there is SO MUCH to say; I don't even know where to begin. Second year of attendance and just as overwhelmed and excited as the first time. So many things to comment about; so many great new books to read; so many authors that I met! Great time! Here is one photo... Can you name this author? There might be a few clues there. I've also added my favorite publisher display. (I am a little biased though! Sleeping Bear Press started in my hometown of Chelsea, Michigan!)